almeida. joao vale de later, john wall for it ready of the wall street journal. our economyr years is recovering at slowest rate since world war two. stays above the same and we are told, let us not read too much into it. recall this "the new normal." the house johnf boehner making his comments today in a speech in washington before the national association of manufacturers. if we are going to use his point as a discussion -- we are going to use his point as a starting point. is this the new normal?

it is friday, june at 21st on this first official day of summer. the senate works on border security on the immigration amendment bill. the farm bill is out for the weekend. nominating james toney to be the next fbi director. the confirmation is expected this afternoon at the white house. all eyes on wall street following two days of heavy losses. yesterday possible sell-off was the biggest for the year for the dollar average. -- yesterday's sell-off was the biggest for the year for the dollar average. you can also join us on our social media sites. let's begin with some of the

headlines, "the atlanta journal constitution," has this - - and "the wall street journal," -- -- he went on to say, "the economy is recovering too slowly and should not be regarded as the new normal." >> we need a new approach. an approach that removes obstacles of growth, prosperity -- of growth and prosperity. unleash the nation

of builders. to become a nation of builders and i think we have to stop picking winners and losers and start focusing on expanding opportunity for everyone. we started out by giving our kids a good chance at an education. to hirend opportunity axa's education so students are ready for tomorrow's job market. to become a nation of builders again, we need to fix our tax code. if we clear out all of these loopholes and make the tax code fair it is going to make it easier to understand, we will be creating more incentives to bring jobs home, and keep our resources here in america. a host: john boehner before the national association of manufacturers. this headline from "the --

this editorial from "the wall street journal" -- joseph on our twitter page has this comment -- logan is on the phone from las vegas on our independent line. caller: good morning.

the newuld not be normal. i am a young student at the academy at canyon springs high school. a i personally believe we all need to sit down, the president and all of the heads, senator minority andother majority leaders, we should be protecting our american citizens. arehree younger brothers technically in a $100,000 worth of debt. we need to come back and we need to have a new foundation laid out. this is why we elect our officials to represent us and give us what we want. how come we have not had what we want to get? yet?at we want host: thank you for the call.

we linked to one of the stories of speaker boehner's speeches today. he lamented "the new normal." this comment from phil -- next is daniel joining us from missouri on the republican line. i just wanted to mention the republicans need to stop towering to the democrats and they need to start following through on what they promised. host: gordon is next from california, independent line. caller: hello. i knew that the economy was going to go downhill when ronald

reagan said, [indiscernible] everybody followed that idiot. china, wemove jobs to are going downhill. survey of americans living paycheck to paycheck. it is available on "the christian science monitor" website. two of every three adults would suffer significant problems if their next paycheck were delayed. the question we are asking is "is the u.s. economy the new normal?' the question -- is the new normal until they pass amnesty.

to betual number is going 46 million. with that we are in for 10 years of lower wages and higher at a private. they promised after that 10 years it is nirvana. for right now it is normal but is only going to get better. host: what are you looking for in the immigration bill and how you think it will impact the economy? toler: hosit is going devastate it. how can you bring in 46 million people, most of the low-wage, on the -- once they are legal they are eligible for all of the benefits -- all of the americans that are worried about medicare and social security, get in line with 46 million more recipients. >> we have often heard -- everybody can bring in

all of their families, the total number they are looking at is going to be 46 million. host: the movement on the immigration bill and the story from "the wall street journal," -- just a day, the senator went to -- we should point out that the senate is back today to continue to work on this amendment. [video clip] will provideation more resources to secure the border -- more manpower, more fencing, more technology. those resources must be fully deployed and operational before the status is allowed. the legislation provides five specific conditions, which must be met before anyone in our

status registered provisional immigrant status can be adjusted and to lawful permanent residence status. these conditions are first. we are including a comprehensive southern border security plan right in the legislation. two is a three-point, billion dollars high-tech plan. ofincludes combinations conventional security infrastructures such as observation towers, mobile camera systems, helicopters, planes, and other equipment to secure the border. hoeven nator john outlining the steps the senate is taking up later today. the headline --

potentially there could be a final vote on the legislation next week. eitherr a possible vote thursday or friday morning before lawmakers head home for the july 4 break. we are focusing on the u.s. economy, is this the new normal. our phone lines --

you can also join us on facebook or twitter, send us an e-mail, and an honor twitter page there is this -- -- on our twitter page there is this -- georgia, independent line, a good morning. caller: speaker boehner's speech was nothing but rhetoric. at what they have done, they have done nothing. they are 80% white and these people are angry. they are angry at everybody. the new law would be we get a democratic house and we could pass these policies that the democrats want to put in -- look

at the polls, is what i'm tryign to say. the new normal would be getting rid of these republicans and putting democrats in office. [indiscernible] whatll tell you exactly they are doing, obstructing and blocking. thank you. host: we are sharing your comments on the twitter page. this is from fred -- here is more from speaker boehner's speech yesterday in washington before the national association of manufacturers. [video clip] >> after four years of "washington knows best," our

economy is recovering at the slowest rate since world war two. if quarter after quarter those numbers barely move. the unemployment stays the same. we are told not to read too much into it. experts call this condition "the new normal." some even argue it is good enough for now. it is not good enough for me, not nearly good enough. i know it is not good enough for you either. on a path ofay growth that keeps 12 million americans out of a job. we are not a people who hobble along hoping somewhere down the line things will get better. we are a people who charterer our own course, who take matters into our own hands. that is why i am here today, because the people in this room represents so much of our nation's economic success and our potential for the future.

from "washington times" -- he said yesterday the top priority right now is jobs and told that message to the national association of manufacturers. the fiscal cliff deal that mostly would have harmed the conservatives balked at the $26 billion tax increases in the deal. one of the points he said is that this week he will likely require a majority of the gop to support any comprehensive immigration reform bill. that story from "the washington times." the question we're asking is is this the new normal?

from bloomberg business week there is this story -- -- that was a reversal of the $22 billion in flows from the first 21 weeks of the year. the headlines this morning is the market is down 350 points from yesterday, the biggest one day sell-off in 2013. good morning, where are you calling from? this economy the new normal? caller: it looks like it with everything the way is going on -- with everything that is going on. my situation iis ok. i have family and friends that have been laid off and trying to find jobs and we all are trying

to help a couple of family members out. host: where are you from? caller: i am calling from north llc -- from north tennessee. our next call, good morning. love c-span and "washington journal." basically this whole concept of ," -- a lot of us forget history. the way i view things is since world war two there has been this big exhalation of government programs. -- escalation of government

programs. over decades they have made these promises and it is starting to encroach in the private sector. the private sector is what creates jobs, not the government. think that as an important concept here. it is kind of a big escalation in government and it is starting to infringe on the private sector. host: if you are listening on c- span radio, coast-to-coast on x m at channel -- on xm channel 119. we will go back to your calls in just a moment. first story from "the wall street journal," -dealing with

the issue of who gets security clearances. this is the headline -- you can read details on the website. the failure of the farm bill yesterday, dealing another blow to the leadership and set off a poisonous round of partisan finger-pointing that raised questions of the ability of the chamber to craft a bipartisan bills on immigration, the budget, and that led to this year. stakeholders' trading blame over how it failed after days of debate over 100 amendments heading into the pot.

but democrats have promised as many as 40 votes but only provided two dozen. republicans saying no to the farm bill, calling it too expensive. formerments of democratic speaker of the house, nancy pelosi -- [video clip] >> they lost 62 of their own members. i use the word "results." that is what the american people expect. when i talk to volunteers in my day over the course of my career, you have to do what you say to the best of your ability and you have to take responsibility. what is happening on the floor today was a demonstration of major and minute hour. they did not get results and put the blame on somebody else. it is always interesting to me when people blame other people for their own failures. when weer came to you

had the majority and said we did not pass the bill because we did not get enough republican votes, it is silly. it is juvenile, it is unprofessional, it is amateur hour. pelosi after the house fail to pass the farm bill, a statement from the chair of the senate, saying the house could start by passing what she called a bipartisan farm bill that passed in the u.s. senate. that is a five-year farm bill that includes spending for the snap program, which is an acronym for the supper -- for the supplemental nutritionist program. home prices jumping 37% over the last year. the price of a single-family home on average is increasing from $180,000 last year and just

over $200,000 last year. they may have a sentence cut today, he has been in prison for the last six years. he is the former enron ceo. he may see the light at the end of the tunnel, he will appear at a houston courtroom that will potentially significantly reduce his time behind bars. jody is joining us from iowa on our line for republicans. but morning. caller: good morning. i was listening to miss pelosi. isn't she the one who said we ?hould pass obama care that is what is hurting a lot of us here in iowa.

i am afraid that this is going to be bad for our economy. the president and his policies, millions of dollars have been wasted. it is tax payer dollars that funded these. they got the money up front they did not produce we have gm building a brand new plant in china because that is the new economy. they still have not paid the tax payers back. my grand kids and my great grand kids are going to be paying for this. host: thank you for the call. where is your city in the state? caller: southwest. host: do you support the immigration bill? caller: i do, i am from

california and arizona. they only build a 38 miles to the fence. been through this when president reagan was in. it never got done. quietthe president had a day after returning late he isday from berlin fromted to announce -- berlin. he is expected to announce his next fbi director. president bush reportedly backed down and halted the intelligence gathering operations in the united states because of the objections from jim comey and others. his role in the former --

back to your calls, then from st. paul, minnesota. your thoughts on the u.s. economy? caller: i was calling about "is this the new normal?" i believe our society cannot continue with this race -- with this redistribution we're going through it seems somehow they redefined capitalism where everybody who works hard has a chance -- that the newrns me republican way seems very suspicious. host: thank you for the call. this is on our twitter page --

we were talking about the immigration bill, the senate is back today trying to hammer out an and the print -- an agreement. a 700 mile fence at the cost of 3000 -- at the cost of $300 million. the post pointed out that this remains a very fluid situation but some potential votes to keep an eye on the immigration -- those are all republican votes. there are also 19 undetermined votes and five that are solid and "no" votes.

that is available online on washigntonpost.com, it is the whip count. from newtown, us pennsylvania. caller: good morning. i just had to respond to the person that called and said the .epublicans are obstructionists if he could just listen to what he said, this is not the new normal. the new normal is yet to come. companies are scaling back, they are cutting people's hours to escape this obama care. there is much more to come and it is going to get worse. i feel sorry for the people that just want to be blind loyalists to the democratic party and not join the bandwagon of success. host: you put a couple of issues

on the table, including reduced wages and companies moving out. what is your biggest concern? caller: the lady that was on a while ago -- she stole a lot of my thunder. we bailed out gm, and now they are building a plant in china. if the democrats are not furious over that there is no help. why don't they please open their eyes and see what is going on in this country? if it continues down this path successaccess -- of non- -- i do not know what to say. host: thank you for the call. this story you might find of interest that focuses on the how money worries can get you down. you might want to read -- you

might want to figure out how to release some of that tension. the survey of more than 1000, conducted by the mcgraw-hill credit union, found the 36 cent -- found that 36% of respondents spent two hours a day worrying about finances. economy, is this the new normal? julia from atlanta, good morning. caller: good morning. if we do not want this it will want this itdo not will not be the new normal. we need to do something about the school books, there is not enough mathematics education in these schoolbooks. those two girls that were killed in carrollton georgia because apparently the school books there are studying, they were blaming everything on white

so they decided to go out and kill them. i do not know what is in there but the school but have not been concentrated on. we do need a new normal but i have found that a lot of people are mucking up business in this country. we have so many government agencies coming to businesses, they cannot concentrate on actual creating a business. the government has jobs right and left but it is not coming from the private sector because they have too many agencies that will close up real quick. thank you. host: thank you for the call. "the washington post" has the story, tying into comments by the speaker of the house over the last two days, the piece by neil irwin - let us take you back to the news

conference by fed chairman ben bernanke and wall street journal reporter, after about where he stands of the economy -- asked about where he stands on the economy. here is a portion from that event. [video clip] fedt is the case that the has overestimated the economy's growth rate very often during this recovery.

through a period during the first half of the year with very subdued growth. i would like to hear you explain where this optimism comes from and how confident you are that these expectations are going to be met. look ahe fundamentals little better to us. and the housing sector, which has been a drag on growth, is not obviously support to growth. it is not only creating construction jobs but house prices rise and increase household wealth, support consumption spending and consumer sentiment, state and local governments are coming to a position where they no longer have to lay off in large numbers of workers. financial conditions are improving. the main drag to growth this year is the federal fiscal estimated to is

be 1.5 percentage points on growth. the fact the economy is still moving ahead at least a moderate pace is indicative that the underlying factors are improving. we will see how that evolves. obviously we have not seen the full effect of the fiscal policy changes. host: ben bernanke on his news conference on wednesday and is editorial from open "the new york times," --

memphis, tennessee, is this the new normal? : of the democrats' line, but morning. -- calling on the democrats' line, good morning. of americans, republicans and democrats, look at what is going on. the rich is getting richer. they are lowering wages. they are trying to blame everything on obama care. -- bringing these jobs back to the united states. upn my children were growing we did not have any recall. the americans are proud of the work they did.

they cover it up, slave labor, they take money. when people start taking care of be donele -- jobs can here in america. the rose, the bridges, there are plenty of job to be created. thank you. this point -- let me share with you some of the comments on our facebook page.

you can join us again or send us a tweet. good morning. caller: how are you doing? i have two things for you. this is the new normal. they want to have part time workers with no benefits. they would rather have 30 part time workers than 10 full time workers. congress is doing nothing. example, whyset an don't they take a pay cut? it is not about democrat or republican, it is about the rich and about the poor. a americans have to wake up.

people we have in these offices are pandering to these big businesses. god bless america. host: the mall for the call. some news on immigration, let me share some headlines from the state newspaper in south carolina -- this is a reference to the immigration amendment being put forward. this headline from "the arizona republic" -- there is the story for "tjhhe tribune" -- -- after a test the 45 minute

call with lead republican negotiators, chuck schumer could no longer follow his own advice. he began to lose hope rather than deliver immigration reform, with 70 + votes. democrats and the gang of eight would have to scratch and scraped their way to make philip filibuster-proof majority. the deal being put forward by senators -- inside "the new york times" --

that your calls, we are focusing on the issue of the u.s. economy. speaker boehner call "the new normal." john from or, or again, a republican line, good morning. -- from aurora, oregon, republican line, good morning. noter: ben bernanke is going to come out and really say what is going on. if he did he would cause a crash. he is just curating. they may housing goes, be selling some housing. but it does not like it is

supposed to be. we are not in a new normal. we are in an economic slowdown and we are slipping faster and faster down the hill. if we do not stop and start taking care of this and the government starts cutting their spending we are going to slip into a major depression that is going to make 1929 look like an economic slowdown. host: thank you for the call. on our twitter page in reference to ben bernanke --

you can watch the speech in its entirety with all of our programming available on our website. detroit is dealing with its own economic situation as well as the city continues to face big pepsi and a shrinking -- and shrinking in -- continues to shrinking.ptcy and that is available online on washingtonpost.com.

democrats line, pennsylvania, good morning. i remember when speaker boehner was asking president obama in 2008, "where is the jobs?" the republicans always talk about caring about americans but they do not show it. host: trick is our next caller from georgia. welcome to the program. caller: thank you for taking my call. we are seeing the dumbing down of the electorate in america. a president and mostly democratic congress. we're just pandering to the voters and communities. it the democrats never saw the spending deal but did not like, especially social where affair.

it just does not look very good the way we are heading now. you see so many interest groups in the united states that have a special interest. most of the minorities -- it just does not look very good at this point. the business section of open "the new york times" -- sing on the economy that is from the business section of open "the new york times." jody has this point on our twitter page -- roses joining us from silver

springs, maryland. good morning. you for taking my call. i agree with the people who are saying our law and order is missing. if people were not doing their job in the last 25 years since reagan and the immigration was supposed to be the better, we would be all working for the same effort. we are not doing that and we are not getting ready to take -- to who areof the people causing these things to go on. our government is in such disorder that to not start getting that absolute order piece by piece instead of trying to work on the circumference of everything, we need the court to be working. bewe need the core to

working. we start by getting rid of the people who have not been doing their job. that obviously has been terrible. piece by piece, we might absolutely get ourselves back to law and order. things would be, i would like to say, normal. this is not the new normal. this is only people trying to make do with what is left. host: let me share with you one other point from "the new york showing that reach beyond the u.s. --

-- "there was reasont he fed -- the fed was doing something. about the nervous u.s. economy may not be ready for the pullback." bettis "the new york times." yorkat is from "the new times." thank you for your calls and comments. if your interested in the speech by u.s. speaker house -- by u.s. house speaker john boehner you can find on our website. we turn our attention to our involvement in afghanistan, potentially as well in syria. james lacey is going to be

joining us in a couple of minutes. late to the european union ambassador will be here to talk about g-8 summit and the potential story of u.s. assistance inside syria. that is all have on the "washington journal." happy first day of summer, we are back in just a moment. ♪oom ♪ >> when you talk about

transparency to the american public, you're going to give up something. you're going to be giving signals to our adversaries as to what our capabilities are. aboutre specific to get the oversight and the program, the more specific you get about the capabilities and the successes, to that extent you have people sitting around saying, "ok, now i can understand what is being done with our numbers in yemen and in the united states and consequently i am quantified another way to communicate. there is a line to be drawn. in terms of what our capabilities are, it is out of our hands. there is a price to be paid for transparency. robert muller makes his last before theppearance senate judiciary committee. --c-span2

3, interviewsn with key house judiciary staff. sunday at 3:00. >> this is a pattern in american women in politics, famous or not. there are two things. one is they are real people who actually do things. there is this secondary capacity of being a personifying figure, a charismatic figure. i think many first lady has come to becoming first ladies and realized that this is larger than life. that is something dolly figured out. ae makes the white house into symbol and she thought to the attachment to capital city. this happened in 1808.

to burnish are going the capital city and all of this work she put into helping the public identify with this house the called "the white house," is going to pay off because there will be a surge of nationalism around the war. "why we study first ladies," monday night at 9 eastern on c- span. >> "washington journal" continues. host: we what james lacey. jameswant to welcomejames la lacey. thank you for being with us. let me begin with some news on this friday morning, and that is the expected talks between the united states taliban, they broke down before they began. what happened?

guest: i think what happened is what most people expected. we negotiated our way out of vietnam, spending weeks or months arguing over the shape of the table. there is a lot of posturing very early on in the stabbings. maybe there were some surprises on t revenants -- on the revenants of the afghan government. explain for us who have not been following the intricacies of these stories, the differences between the caliban and al qaeda it -- a teh taliban and al qaeda. ran aft canaliban stand before our arrival. afghanistan before our arrival. an arab legiond and they gave the taliban a lot -- fighters to handle some

they became a sin by ethnic relationship. -- a symbiotic relationship. gettaliban continues to support. tghhe united states -- initially it had been we had to get rid of al qaeda. we are hopeful as the talks will go on we will declare a break witha al qaeda. it is left to be determined. host: let me ask you about the afghanistan president, who has been opposed to these talks. what role does he have in this back guest: 6 he has a tremendous role for now.

he -- what role does he have in this? guest: he has tremendous role for now. the afghan government will not negotiate without his approval. there is substantial pressure being put on him to be a part of the game. is2014 at the united states gone and he cannot say he is going to bend to our wishes are the caliban. the taliban. once the united states leaves substantial forces -- having said that, the united states has made remarkable strides recently in the last couple of years in creating a very efficient afghanistan military. i was talking to an army colonel the day before guests today, who was recently back. he said the afghan military is

far beyond what we were used to, what it was, and what people think it is. these guys fight. the iraqi army does not want to fight their enemies. the guys we now have in the afghan army are willing to fight and defend their government. they are efficient, well trained -- i do not think the taliban comes to the negotiating table if they think they can win. this is a pretty hard force to beat. host: you list 20 clashes that change the world. i would ask you about those conflicts and wars, but my question is is afghanistan one of them? i put the battle of a

rack in there. not that it was decisive. involvement inn the middle east is a decisive moment. it is going to impact for decades, maybe much longer. in the cause and effect arabs spring, what is going on now in turkey, what is going on in syria, it may be hard but there is no doubt that some at democratic movements or social movement for better economic conditions have a lot to do with our presence in there. our relationship with iran is driving a lot of what we are seeing strategically in that region. host: this question on our twitter page --

guest: in many ways, yes. you cannot not negotiate. at some point all wars must end. a roman -- way from as they used to say we create a desert and collett peace. -- and call it peace. rebuildin there to help a nation on some basis in which it could go forward into prosperity at some level with some freedom and choice for the people of those countries. if that is your going in the aim negotiate with

your enemies. you cannot and a fight without some sort of political solution. even an imperfect solution will keep everybody at the table for quite some time. -- ton churchill once said, we could be at this for a long time. host: let me bring it back to the afghanistan president. sources indicate he is upset on a number of issues, including the fact that the taliban opened an office in doha. the name of the government that was referred to -- that referred to the caliban -- to the taliban, it was called the islamic emirate. it looks like they were setting up a republican -- setting up --

he does not want to negotiate for a government in waiting. he did sign off on this catarrh office in 2011. putting a plaque up in a new name and flying a separate flag and was currently in the afghan state. it was probably decide to get his attention and make some sort of reaction. as of today i understand the flag cannot be removed -- cannot be seen from outside the gate. defending title has been removed from the office from their wall. -- the wall from their office. host: this is a story from "to the national journal" with a focus on senator chris murphy, he is a democrat from the headline is

-- overriding questions is if we are the rebels how long will this take? are we looking at another 10- year commitment inside syria if president assad is forced out? assad is president get some ofefore we the rebel forces armed, i think we are in a world of hurt. the best arm, mostly quiet, and most dedicated form of islamic fighters. they have not been doing a lot. it has been under constant pressure. there is a very good chance that a assad leaves the for a secular movement takes over, the chaos continues as a fight for power between the

various groups. we do not want an islamic group winning that fight. the chaos is beyond understanding. i spent a lot of time looking at it. there are several groups. right they are upset at the assad government. once the assad government goes away, there will be a scramble for power. syria as to bring close as they can be to a free and open state as opposed to an islamic state looking backwards. host: the question congress will continue to ask is, who are we are men and how do we supplied the arms to these troubles? guest: we have to be careful. there is a movement led by a general. he seems to be a practical man.

he seems to be someone the west can deal with. he seems to have good ideas about what happens to syria in terms of opening up a prosperous state with free elections. he is our guy. whether he can get all of the weapons to the rights movement and whether some of those weapons will sneak into movements we do not want, we do not know. he is having trouble controlling his actions. he has lost one or two accounts. the big fight will be for aleppo. it looks like syria is moving closer every day. he will need big and sophisticated weapons to do it. the united states will make sure those sophisticated weapons to not leaked out of syria. lacey is joining us in our washington studio. he teaches at the moraine war

college and at johns hopkins university. -- the marine war college at johns hopkins university. us fromoining tallahassee on the republican line. good morning. pamela.james, this is i appreciate what you just said. we have to negotiate and we should not go in to destroy nations. how will the u.s. government claimed the moral authority it needs to win been wars now that more people are waking up to the scientific evidence that the twin towers were brought down in a pre planned and controlled demolition on 9/11? on the 82ndfice was floor on the world trade center. there is no evidence that the united states government had anything to do with the taking down of the towers and the world

trade center. while i honestly do not want to add to the question period it is so far out of bounds from what is true and -- i do not want to add to the question > . it is out of bounds from what is true and real. we need to reevaluate what we are as a nation. america cannot be the answer to all of the world's problems. each year, we are involved in another conflict with it is iraq, libya, or syria. we need to invest in our economy so that we can maintain our age over china in the 21st century. not a benefit. it is an unnecessary drain of resources. the other powers. when they became overextended

internationally, they collapsed. that is my comment. guest: the united states does not have ultimate power. we can influence a lot of situations and do it to make the world a better place. with limited sacrifices in blood and treasure. there is a duty to give other people the chance for the economic prosperity we have. arabe and open prosperous and awould in rich sustained the united states of america. how much is it going to cost? i am in favor of making careful selections. i am also a guy who says you cannot retreat from the world. when the united states retreats from any corner of the war, thes comes in -- corner of

world, chaos comes in our wake. we have to be extremely careful. there are places we can intervene at limited cost to a bloodn -- to ourselves in and treasure. you have to look carefully when you commit american soldiers and airmen to a region. we are the only power that can make the world better in many cases. it is wrong to stop that from there. host: what is the likelihood we could have boots on the ground inside syria? --st: that is anybody's yes anybody's guess. host: how does our relationship with pakistan affect our relationship with afghanistan and the taliban? guest: when pakistan was the taliban to do and what pakistan's policy toward afghanistan is going to be going

forward is crucial. that is why we are involved in pakistan and talking to them and bringing them into this process at every step. host: benny in new york on the independent -- betty in new york on the independent line. are you with us? caller: he just made a comment about prosperity. our country is not prosperous right now and for us to be involved in any other war is right now is disarming. the other day when they showed that beautiful building that the taliban built in afghanistan, it upset me to the point that i told my husband, who was in the service 20 years, that i cannot believe our soldiers would stay over there and looked at this is say, the taliban eventually going to take over

that country. we all know that. people out here are not stupid. we watch c-span and we read a lot of papers. there are a lot of people who know that is what is going to happen. for those three men to have died the other day when we should be out of here now -- what ever happens there, it happens. we cannot cure all of the people's struggles in this world. don't you realize what is happening to our government? you are talking about prosperity. we might be the richest country in the world. that is only for a few. the rest of us are hard-working it.le who are barely making we see money go out and out and out. it is great to feel you can save the world. but at whose expense? these young kids who are being

killed and maimed? an army officer for a dozen years. . have been to afghanistan once nobody cares more about what the soldiers are going through a what they have done and what they have accomplished and i do. i do not think the taliban can win or will win. they would not seriously negotiate if they thought they could. i am a supporter of coming home. we have given afghans their best chance at freedom and prosperity. now it is up to them. i am pretty hopeful. i do not believe the united states can solve the world's problems. i believe we have to be there and be able to influence many areas of the world. we have to stay involved. if we do not, that things happen. when the world is not prosperous, the united states is

not prosperous. i cannot want to send all of our treasure to other countries when we need that money at home. there is a lot the oil on in the united states that needs fixing. economy. slow-growth we are talking two different issues. i believe a lot of what we spent overseas in military involvement in diplomatic involvement and everything else we do comes back to us many ways in space. a world without the u.s. involvement with his bad very quickly. we have had these kinds of retreats before and it has resulted in some terrible times for the united states and the world. host: this is a map courtesy of the chicago tribune and the baltimore sun. it shows the transition process inside afghanistan. let me share with you where we were in march 2011. you can see in the blue area

outside kabul, the area that was in transition. the lighter area is the area that was completed. a far different matter in may of 2012. a third step covered 70% of the population of afghanistan. he fourth stepped began. the fifth steps started. most of the area has been completed. some still in transition along the southern border of afghanistan. what does this tell you? a lot of people read the papers and -- people read the papers and can tell you about everything that is wrong in afghanistan. inr 1 million people afghanistan are educated and are women. that has never happened before.

afghanistan works. one of the things i noticed when i went over there -- i flew over can the car when i came in. 700,000 people in the city of can the hearth. they are fed every day. -- of kandahar. it may not work to standards that the west and western countries are used to. it works of their terms and it is growing. their economy is growing at almost 100% since we have been there. it will not be a first-rate nation it any time in the future in my lifetime. it may get to the point where they get out of the bottle -- bottom 10. that is a reason to be hopeful. host: we are moving between syria and afghanistan. i will go back to syria. this is from our twitter page. .ou can follow us on @cspanwj

where are the muslim nations stopping assad in syria? guest: one of the reasons the united states has made the move on the rebels is because the islamic states saw that the most progress being made by the rebel forces to remove the assad government was being made by islamic groups. they started moving their money and supplies that are sending them to these islamic groups. the united states would like them to reduce the support for these islam and groups and get back to general interest organizations, our umbrella groups over a number of secular organizations. host: a u.s. army captain was captured in 2009 outside of one

of the bases in afghanistan. that is being used as a tool to release some of the prison as the u.s. is holding at guantanamo bay. can you explain that? i take this in many ways. as a former army officer and, you do not leave anybody behind. i want to take our one prisoner back with us. that is an important issue for the military folks. it is a bedrock commitment that we have to our people. want released are some really, really bad guys. every war must end. negotiations must be part of that war. at some point, you have to do something that builds trust on their side. they have to build trust on our side. host: so what are you saying? could there be a swap? yesterday whether there will be

or will not be a swap is totally outside my purview. -- be or whether there will will not be a swap is outside of my purview. he is really is have released hundreds hoping the hundredth will go back and there will be a new era of peaceful negotiations -- hoping the hundreds will go back and there will be a new era of negotiation. there are reasons to do this. we are going to have to leave it to the negotiators to make sure the united states and afghanistan benefits from whatever we do. is joining us from georgia on the republican line. caller: the the president was caught with an open mike with the russian president's saying was he got elected -- mic saying was he got elected he

would be more reasonable with the russians. olive gotten so many branches that i do not know how he can sit down. that places terrible. we have no leadership over there. thank you. guest: i believe that open microphone was talking about missile defense and nuclear weapons, not what was going to go on in the middle east. an interest. syria is its only foothold in the middle east these days. they do not want to see a government they have supported for two generations be removed. all the pulling out stops. they have moved ships into the region. it is a serious complication. i do not think russia is calling

all of the shots. they have a very limited hand to play. but we will find out. host: with regard to syria, is this a military or cia operation when it comes to farming the rebels? arminging the rebels -- the rebels? guest: i do not think one could do it without the other one. host: is a six month commitment or a tenure commitment? what are we -- is it a six month commitment or a 10 year commitment? what are we looking at? guest: if we set out to topple the president aside -- president assad government --

assad government, these are things for the future. if you have an objective, i am against setting time lines. host: looking back at our 10-12 your commitment looking back at afghanistan, in hindsight, does that surprise you or is this something you could have expected? guest: i was surprised. as a military historian, i know that when you start to fight, you do not know how it is going to end. when england when to say: in 1939 from hitler, they did not -- when england went to save poland in 1939 from hitler, they russia to bet there. what we were trying to do. we have concerns now.

i have always been one of those guys to said, look where our real interests are. that is what we are doing. host: luis is joining us from daytona beach, florida. good morning. louise is joining us from daytona beach, florida. feelings have mixed about this. as far as the number of dead, 90,000, whatever. they were not all killed by assad. radio, syrians that were fleeing syria said the rebels were extreme. i believe that after hearing stories about them cutting out the hearts and livers. john mccain, when he went over recently and did the photo shoot, it came out on msn b.c.

that one of the man standing next to him was safe -- msnbc came to the united states and works with a group to bring down the assad government. doesn't that sound like a replay? thatalso very suspicious israel has not said a word since this whole rebellion began two years ago. just sitting back and taking it in. it makes you wonder. guest: there was a lot there. the last point is interesting. i cannot fathom how israel is reacting to this right now. on the far end, they were very machiavellian and smart and looking and saying, hezbollah is committed. they could see their ground forces wrecked. that would be an level of

machiavellianism i am not sure anyone is capable of these days. you never know. some of these rebel groups are bad. these islamic groups we would prefer not to be in charge of syria. is not theovernment worst government in the world. it is a bad government and the people are trying to overthrow it. there really is no easy answer to your question. this accounts for the u.s. reticence to give them any kind of lethal aid. it is a chaotic situation and we have to be careful as we go forward. able to dos assad all this with an economy that has teetered on the brink? gotten a lot of

money from iran. the iranians have put troops on the ground. all of the flights over iraq on a continuous basis come with equipment and money. all he can count on is 90,000. shiais part of creating a presence. the heart of most of these drives tos iran's preach -- to become a strategic power. we have to look at it as, how is iran and about and how does this affect our long-term prospects throughout the persian gulf? host: how does the election of a new, moderate leader in iran affect all of that? -hopeful.am quasi i do not think the new leader is as moderate as we are told. he is 3 or four steps ahead of the previous guy.

he wants to rebuild the iranian economy. he is on record as saying, we can talk. as we talk, they will allow us to build nuclear weapons. he was involved in many of the tough crackdowns. the religious leaders of that country that can take,. he was part of the power structure for a long, -- a religious leader of that country let him take power. they are sitting on a tinderbox looking for a way out. some of them are looking for a way out. this could be our opening. i would not get my hopes up over the high. host: of the instability continues in turkey, most recently assembled. how does that play for the region? there has president

8% or 9% growth. that has been reduced by 2%. he needs hundreds of millions of dollars per year to go in there. money turns off because of this, the 2% growth they are now getting mace -- may turn negative very quickly. 60% of its population is under 30. this could get pretty bad. everyone is willing to settle it and look to the future. this is the first time his government has been told no by the people. he has to step back when and reassess why did they tell me and what do i have to do. to hunter in go sonoma, california. good morning. caller: just looking at the

subtitle. barack will be given afghanistan $4 billion a year for the next 10 years. now this mess in syria. we will always have a mess in syria. we will always have a mess in the middle east. america is beyond tired, beyond burned out. we are beyond being broke. i know of air force man who got a hold of this boat and they told me it is quite dangerous. . -- i know airman who got a hold of this book. this is dangerous. in 2015, barack is shutting down the fdic.

is taking over unemployment. that is in the barack obama health care lawbook. he has 36 loss slated. he is focusing on the middle east. -- he has 36 laws slated. guest: bank of america is not going to take over our health care. i do not think any of what i just heard happens to be true. ypsilanti, michigan with james lacey. go ahead with your point. caller: i am a state delegate with the republican party here in michigan. i was in d.c. yesterday at the glenn beck rally and i talked to mert.sentative go

my question is this. in 1971, richard nixon took us off of the gold standard. our dollar is not backed by oil. since then, we have found out oh well. abionic it keeps on coming up in alaska. we have a problem with the russians. they do not want to use the u.s. dollar and the world does not want to use our dollars. we had a treaty in 1971 with opec to use the united states dollar. our dollar afloat, we have to use their military. we are going to have problems with the russians. rubles.t to use host: we will leave it there.

the events he referred to is on our website. if there is a such a oil, that willc be a boon for the entire world. our money is not backed by oil. i am a big supporter of the gold standard. it will help the government get its finances under control. at the same time, you can only be on the gold standard for a little while. it works perfectly up until the day it does not work and you have a financial disaster on your hands. russian rubles will not replace the u.s. dollar in time in the future. it is almost an inconvertible currency. it has very little to do with world trade. the dollar still makes of 60% of the reserves of every nation in the world. we are the reserve currency of

the world. the economy is still in a slow- growth phase, but we are not in any danger of being replaced on the international stage as far as the u.s. dollar is concerned for quite some time. that you list 20 clashes change the world. what is the most significant? guest: the battle of marathon. try to conquer greece. greece.d to conquer conquer greece. they came back 10 years later, but the victory at marathon gave the greeks to fight and win. if the purchase had won, western civilization as we know it, free markets, free speech, would have been wiped out. everything we know, greek

civilization concrete poetry, what we have built our western culture on, would have been destroyed. you can see the fault line set up after the marathon. it defines what we are seeing in the middle east today. louis on our. democrats' line. good morning. caller: james, i would like you inweigh in on the shiites lebanon and how that will tear apart disco syrian colbert -- help wend now over to are trying to give to the syrian army. lebanon is not a stable society. taking to the do you seesyria,

that we are going to have a shiite overtaken the region? they seem to be the best organized as far as on the ground. i am just wondering what you think about that idea. i am appreciating your down to earth and thoughtful answer is very much. thank you. are welle shiites funded. the iranians are in this to win. is in this to win. we are looking at a stable democratic peace. assad has a lot more interest in the outcome of this fight than many of the players.

the lebanese government has asked hezbollah to step back because it fears it is going to cause internal fighting in lebanon again. jordan is a fragile country. it is our strongest ally in the region and has been for quite some time. become araq has to stable country is endangered by continuing to fight in syria. turkey will have to step back because of its own internal troubles. it remains to be seen and death of the complicates the matter. we cannot want is turning into a gigantic regional squabbles. it is on the fringes. we have to play -- pay close attention to it. it will get ugly if we step away. we can make mistakes, but we can

do things right to help a lot of people, including ourselves. host: we will conclude on that note. "the momentcalled, of battle." coming up, we will turn our attention to the g-8 summit, which wrapped up in northern ireland. is thele de almeida ambassador to the european union. he will be discussing the develop the story in syria. later, america by the numbers. we look at the employment picture in the u.s.. "washington journal" continues. it is friday, june 21.

if an -- >> this is a challenging time for people who are conservatives. we have a quite liberal democratic president who has been elected and reelected after putting into place some ideas and programs and projects that are wrongheaded. the public had a chance to think about that and they did reelect him. it is a challenging time. it is also an exciting time if ist you are trying to do modernize conservatism, bring it in line with the challenges the country faces now. the house conservatives think about how to confront the challenges of the 21st century. neither party is doing a good job of that.

there is a lot of opportunity for thinking about what america in the 21st century needs to change about the way it governs itself to get back to economic growth to give back to prosperity and get back to a cultural revival. it is challenging and exciting. at 8 p.m. onnday c-span's "q & a." >> it looks like we have a chance. an expert had not been settled yet. this is made. assault. tried an this is our chance to maybe get them again in free soil, win a victory that would bring the lincoln administration to the negotiating table. idea was so taken by the

that he formed a three man commission that would negotiate with the lincoln government upon the confederate victory in pennsylvania. when lee went north, he went north to settle. >> the 150th anniversary of the battle of gettysburg sunday, june 30 starting at 930 -- 9: 30 p.m. eastern on c-span 3. >> washington journal continues. host: joao vale de almeida is the ambassador to the united states. let me begin with the g-8 summit. the debate continues here in the u.s. among democrats and republicans and in europe about austerity and budget cutbacks versus further stimulus. we have seen what happened in

the stock market. where do you come down on that issue? guest: we are dealing with the aftershocks of the financial crisis. there is an enormous effort to a redress the economy to promote job creation. it is not easy. we are facing enormous challenges on both sides. we have different kinds of responses, different contacts in america. the common concern is to make sure the recovery is a sustainable one, that we do not go up and down in terms of economic performance. we have established a few lines. we need financial stability and we need to increase our competitiveness. we are facing enormous challenges from emerging economies. we need those economies to adjust in education and training and as skills to the job market. we could go wrong in a number of

things we need to do. the g-8 has clearly that in the fight back. we need to join efforts at the international level. host: put that in terms of specifics. what needs to happen? guest: we need to work on the debt and the deficit. at the same time we need to invest in an intelligent way. invest in the future so our economy can invest in the future. about 13.5% in increase in u.s. income per person compared to a 5% increase for a european resident if this trade deal is worked out. a big disparity for benefits in the u.s. sources in europe.

guest: the purposes of the studies are different. i would not pay to been much attention to those studies. the one element that is common is that this will be good. this free trade area across the advanta, which will be the biggest in the world, will be beneficial for our consumers and for the job market. it will be good for the households. we are talking about an increase in the -- in a half percentage point between the gdp of america and europe. theould add $160 billion to u.s. economy. this means dozens of thousands of jobs being created in europe and in america. more investment on both sides. this is one of the responses to the crisis. we were happy to see our leader, president obama and

leaders in europe and agreeing on launching these negotiations. host: from the wall street journal. followed by canada china and mexico and japan. host: -- to stayt is compelling together we are half of the world's wealth. -- croatiaer states a about to join -- together hundred million consumers. this is big. this can have enormous potential in bringing together the world economy, which will open more markets for us. a win-win project that we launched. it is an historic week for transatlantic relations. i am happen to be here discussing this. we are optimistic about what we can do.

it is at the heart of the political agenda here and in europe -- the jobs and growth. host: has the euro worked out as expected? guest: the hero is a great success. if you look back at the -- the euro is a great success. if you look back at the last 10 years, the growth pattern of our countries is a very good. success to the core of the european continent. some of the witnesses of out -- weaknesses in our model were revealed. you can expect europe to return to growth by the end of this year. and then, hopefully, start a positive cycle. if we learned that with the trade agreement, you can have a

good context where the american economy benefits and the european economy benefits. i am optimistic and positive about what we have in front of us. followed the opposition to the british government. margaret thatcher was a critic of the euro. britishimagine the government would ever joined the euro? join the euro? guest: that is up to the british people. joining the european union is a free decision of people. joining the euro is a decision that has to be made by each country. we have 17 countries today. next year, another country will join. the euro area is expanding.

countries believe this is the best way to promote and protect their interests. to british people will have decide. let's see how it evolves in britain. i do not expect britain to join the euro anytime soon in the coming years. democratic debate is there. in the participation european union and the modalities of their participation. sometimes i hear people say, britain is out of the union. it is not. clinton is a full-fledged member of the european -- britain is a full-fledged member of the european union. host: less share with you some of the comments from president obama as he finished up his meeting in northern ireland and travel to berlin. he talked about other issues at the brandenburg gate, the issue of terrorism.

here's more from the president. [video clip] >> even as we remain vigilant about the threat of terrorism, we must move beyond the mindset of potential war. that means redoubling our efforts to close the prison at guantanamo. [applause] it means finally controlling our use of new technologies like drones. it means balancing the pursuit of security with the protection of privacy. i am confident that balance can be struck. i am confidence of that in i am confident that working with germany we can keep each other safe while at the same time maintaining those essential values for which we fought. current programs are bound

by the will of law and they are focused on threats to security. they help confront real danger and they keep people safe here in the united states and here in europe. but we must accept the challenge that all of us in democratic listen tos face, to the voices we disagree with us. to have an open debate about how we use our powers. ambassador, what did you hear in that speech? is the president ease any concerns that the european community may have on this the stopping-phone records issue we are dealing with in the u.s.? glad that the president brought the good weather. it was an importance speech. we were glad he did it in europe. it was a very powerful andession of solidarity

convergent views. there are a number of issues we address on a daily basis. there are also issues, societal ofues that are the subject debate across the atlantic. sometimes we have different starting points. on the issue of security and privacy, you recognize that sometimes in europe we are particularly attentive to the protection of privacy and personnel data. in this particular case, we have been seeking clarification from the american side about some aspects of your fight against terrorism, which we fully share and we fully cooperate with. i am hopeful with transparency and dialogue, we will overcome

some difficulties in the debate. we are fully committed to and fully share your objective in securing security. on the want to follow up security issue in syria in just a moment. we welcome your calls and e- mails. you can join us on facebook or twitter. we have our conversation with the european union ambassador to the u.s. i want to share comments from president assad from a german newspaper with regard to assistance inside syria. he said, if the europeans ship weapons, europe's back yard becomes a carrot place in europe will become -- will -- that yard becomes a place. guest: there is no silver bullets.

it is a complex situation. together, i amng happy to see how closely we are working with americans and europeans. we will try to find the best way out. we are insisting today on a political solution, on a political process and negotiations between all parties to come to a negotiated outcome of this difficult situation. we are all so attentive to the humanitarian dimension. we are having the worst refugee crisis in many decades. we need to learn that the political and humanitarian sides. we need to keep a number of options open. toeurope, we decided consider the possibility, on a selective basis, to provide support to the opposition. we are evaluating all of the

options. we are discussing with our friends. we are supporting a process in geneva to try to find a solution. we work on different grounds with the common aim of finding a solution to the complex and difficult problem. rom lis -- from lisbon, portugal. guest: i was happy to have a conversation. we were born in the same town. italiansince the supreme court president has called for a criminal investigation of 9/11 and agrees with the scientific evidence that explosives must of been used to bring down the buildings in new york, would the eu be

open to conducting its own 9/11 investigation? host: we know there is a concerted effort to flood the airwaves with these calls. we ask that you go to another network. caller: please do not interrupt me. it is off topic and we have had a number of people call in. we had another person who called in and basically disputed everything called on this question. we ask that you choose another network or another venue. you are certainly welcome to respond. we ask that you take your call somewhere else. guest: i have no comments on this. barry ine will go to saginaw, michigan. good morning. aller: it has always been thing for the united states where you help our enemy.

president obama gives weapons to the rebels who are affiliated with al qaeda. that is giving weapons and aid to our enemies and that is treason. , believe that if he does this him and any other politician involved in getting this done should be tried for treason. am i right in my understanding of what treason is? guest: i cannot wish to comment on internal american affairs. if you are referring to the situation in syria, we are extremely attentive to all the supportnces of military to any faction in syria. we are balancing all of the canments in the way we

help to the opposition. this is part of the discussions we have. of a what about the idea no-fly zone? >> we have to learn from past experiences in similar situations where some options worked better than others. i think the military people are looking at all of that. i want to return to my initial point. there is no silver bullet thus far as syria is concerned. there is no magic solution that we provide all of the right answers. we can provide all the right solutions for it. we need a political solution. there has to be a negotiated outcome all of this situation. we should be focus and concentrate and invest on creating -- invest in creating

the conditions for those discussions to take place there were a number of conversations with president putin. he is a member of the g-8. he had a frank discussion on this issue. we support the initiatives of secretary carry -- secretary kerry to have talks about this in geneva. no easy solution to the serious problem. in front commitment to all of us to try to find a solution. host: let me have you had to tell she photographs. the sessions that took place sunday, monday, and early tuesday. there is this story from the new york times. the president often finds a cold shoulder. you can look at the body language between the president and president putin.

ofthere is a culture interpreting photographs. was directly involved in the preparation of the g-8 summit officials tos, directly support the leaders. i know the kind of atmosphere one can create at the g-8. you have to in this around the table discussing the hottest issues -- you have to send leaders around the table discussing the hottest issues. leaders around a table discussing the hottest issues. it is may be the best and most intimate setting for discussions among leaders regardless of what the photographs show and revealed. for peopled occasion to discuss issues like syria or iran or economic situations.

are: relations with russia not at their best stage at this moment. based on a lot of issues, not only what is happening in syria, iran, the adoption issue that is restricting americans' from adopting russian babies -- americans from adopting russian babies. guest: i can tell you they are always very colorful. we are very committed. some of the issues are difficult. we insist on a number of points that are not comfortable for the russian side. we have a number of irritants in our trade and economic relations. big partner. it is a member of the g-8. tohink we need to continue engage with our russian friends.

on iran, we are on the same wavelength. i think this is important. of countries.the the russians are on board. ast: if you were doing dictionary on diplomatic speak and defining colorful, how would you describe it? to your will leave it imagination, the definition of colorful. southline, go to michigan. good morning. how thei was wondering people of germany felt about having this barrier between the present and the people, this bulletproof shields? did he bring it or did the german government provide it?

it seems to separate him from the public he was trying to address. involved in the preparations. it was a powerful speech. he madeymbolic that this speech in front of the brandenburg gate. i have been to this place. it is so harmful in representing the reconciliation of the two germany's, -- germanys and the fall of the berlin wall. it is meaningful that the president chose to do it there regardless of the security circumstances, which everybody understands these days. we need to be sure nothing really happens. we need to retain the message and the symbolism of the occasion. for me, it represents a lot about transatlantic ties and how much we need to do together to ensure security for our people.

i think it was good the president went to europe. i knew that he went to berlin. we hope to see the president more often in europe. he is very much welcome in europe. it is a powerful way of underlining the importance of transatlantic ties. host: the president outlined his plan to reduce by 1/3 the u.s.- russian nuclear arsenal. there will be a summit in 2016. more from the president's speech wednesday in berlin. the bank -- [video clip] america and our allies while reducing strategic nuclear weapons by up to 1/3. negotiated cuts with russia can move beyond cold war nuclear power steering.

-- posturing. [applause] at the same time, we will work with our nato allies to seek both reductions in the u.s. and russian tactical weapons in europe. we can forge a new an international framework for peaceful nuclear power, reject thatuclear weaponization north korea and iran may be seeking. america will continue efforts to secure nuclear materials around the world. we will work to build support in the united states to ratify the nuclear test ban treaty and called on all nations to begin negotiations on a treaty that for production of materials nuclear weapons. these are the steps we can take to create a world of peace with justice. host: ambassador joao vale de

the european union ambassadors to the united states. this is the president's goal by 2016. how does he exited that goal? the concernsre about nuclear proliferation. north korea and iran were mentioned by the president. full cooperation with americans on these issues. this is a collective effort that will require collective will to achieve these goals. the president outlined an agenda. continue the process in all of the diplomatic channels. all of the members of the european union are committed to these goals. dialogues with russia.

engagement in finding the right solution. but it is a very powerful positive agenda the president outlined. host: talking about the g8 summit and what happens next. our line for republicans with the eu ambassador here in washington. good morning. caller: i have my own beliefs on what is going on. theve always believed united states has always wanted to deal with one country which controls a lot of countries. with that in mind, the euro is a way of controlling countries. we had world war i, germany lost, world war ii, germany lost. andwe have the euro, whenever a problem develops, it is germany that has the last word. as countries begin to default, germany will pick up the pieces without ever firing one shot. thank you very much.